Best students ever send their cafeteria worker on an all-expense paid vacation to Disney World

Kathryn Thompson has always dreamt of taking her family to Disney World. So, Taylor Zisholtz and Lucy Smith-Williams decided that they would make it happen.

Thompson has been a staff member at the Acorn coffee shop at Elon University for a decade, and is something of a campus institution. She had never left Elon, but dreamed of being able to take her son, daughter-in-law, and two grandsons to see Mickey Mouse.

One day, the two students — junior Zisholtz and freshman Smith-Williams, who didn’t know each other at the time — learned this, and decided to make the beloved campus figure’s dream come true.

They put their heads together, figured out how much the trip would cost for the family of five, and set up a GoFundMe, hoping that enough students would donate a dollar to get Thompson the vacation she had been dreaming about. In three days, they’d raised over half of their goal; the speed with which the Elon community came together to give this gift to Thompson is a testament to her importance on campus.

Thompson’s family made their trip last weekend, and The Disney Blog posted a video of their magical time. According to the blog, after the first video went viral, more people from all over the world made donations. It’s unclear as to whether the family used it on their vacation, but either way Thompson —who works the late shift and often leaves the Acorn coffee shop at 2 a.m. — deserves it.

Her family got to ride the rides, marvel at the sights, and were even able to meet Mickey. They were also surprised by the appearance of Zisholts and Smith-Williams; in the video, Thompson squeals with delight when she sees them, and they join the family in enjoying some of the attractions. Thompson spends the new video grinning from ear to ear, and occasionally tearing up. She says over and over, “It’s a dream come true.” So, we think it’s safe to say: our faith in humanity is officially restored.